Seafoods 9: Oysters (蠣黃)

海鮮單::蠣黃 蠣黃生石子上。殼與石子膠粘不分。剝肉作羹，與蚶、蛤相似。一名鬼眼。樂清、奉化兩縣土產，別地所無。 List of Seafoods::Oysters Oysters grow with their shells stuck fast to rocks, making them particularly difficult to dislodge. After being shucked, they can be cooked as a thick soup [1] in the same manner of cockles and clams. Known also as "ghost eyes"[2], oysters can only be found in the two prefectures of …

Seafoods 8: Scallops (江瑤柱)

海鮮單::江瑤柱 江瑤柱出寧波，治法與蚶、蟶同。其鮮脆在柱，故剖殼時多棄少取。 List of Seafoods::Scallop Scallops[1] come from Ningbo and should be prepared in the same manner as cockles [2] and razor clams [3]. The most delicious and crisp portion of the scallop is the central "pillar". Thus when shucking scallop, one will be throwing away most of it and keeping only this small portion. …

Seafoods 7: Cuttlefish roe (烏魚蛋)

海鮮單::烏魚蛋 烏魚蛋最鮮，最難服事。須河水滾透，撤沙去臊，再加雞湯、蘑菇煨爛。龔雲若司馬家制之最精。 List of Seafoods::Cuttlefish roe Cuttlefish roe [1] is very tasty but also rather difficult to prepare. One needs to throughly boil it using river water to remove any sand and rid it of its stench. After that it must be simmered with chicken broth and mushrooms until tender. Marshall[2] Gong Yunruo's household prepares …

Seafoods 6: Whitebait (海蝘)

海鮮單::海蝘 海蝘，寧波小魚也，味同蝦米，以之蒸蛋甚佳。作小菜亦可。 List of Seafoods::Whitebait[1] Whitebait are small dried fish from Ningpo.[2] Their flavours are similar to dried shrimp and are very good in steamed egg.[3] When prepared well they also make excellent side dishes.[4] Random notes: [1]: Known as haiyan (海蝘) or "sea geckos", which matches the visual description of these tiny translucent silvery …

Seafoods 5: Mussels (淡菜)

海鮮單::淡菜 淡菜煨肉加湯，頗鮮，取肉去心，酒炒亦可。 List of Seafoods::Mussels Braising pork with dried mussels in broth produces a dish with incredible umami. Remove the innards of the mussel and one can make a good wine flavoured stir-fry with the reserved flesh [1]. Random notes: [1]: I'm a bit unsure about this translation. The text goes "take the flesh and …

Seafoods 4: Abalone (鰒魚)

海鮮單::鰒魚 鰒魚炒薄片甚佳。楊中丞家削片入雞湯豆腐中，號稱鰒魚豆腐，上加陳糟油澆之。莊太守用大塊鰒魚煨整鴨，亦別有風趣。但其性堅，終不能齒決，火煨三日，才拆得碎。 List of Seafoods::Abalone Abalone [1] is best when sliced thinly and then stir-fried. The house-hold of Yang Zhongcheng serves a dish they call "abalone tofu", where shaved abalone is simmered in a soup of chicken broth, tofu, and seasoned with aged zaoyu.[2] Prefect Zhuang serves a very unique dish consisting of large chunks …

Seafoods 3: Two Ways of Preparing Shark Fin (魚翅二法)

海鮮單::魚翅二法 魚翅難爛，須煮兩日，才能摧剛為柔。用有二法︰一用好火腿、好雞湯，加鮮筍、冰糖錢許煨爛，此一法也；一純用雞湯串細蘿蔔絲，拆碎鱗翅攙和其中，飄浮碗面，令食者不能辨其為蘿蔔絲、為魚翅，此又一法也。用火腿者，湯宜少；用蘿蔔絲者，湯宜多。總以融洽柔膩為佳。若海參觸鼻，魚翅跳盤，便成笑話。吳道士家做魚翅，不用下鱗，單用上半原根，亦有風味。蘿蔔絲須出水二次，其臭才去。嘗在郭耕禮家吃魚翅炒菜，妙絕！惜未傳其方法。 List of Seafoods::Two Ways of Preparing Shark Fin Shark fin does not soften easily and needs to be boiled for around two days before it is supple enough to eat. There are two ways of preparing shark fin; the first involves simmering it with good ham, good chicken broth, fresh bamboo shoots, and …

Seafoods 2: Three Ways of Preparing Sea Cucumbers (海參三法)

海鮮單:海參三法 海參，無味之物，沙多氣腥，最難討好。然天性濃重，斷不可以清湯煨也。須檢小刺參，先泡去沙泥，用肉湯滾泡三次，然後以雞、肉兩汁紅煨極爛。輔佐則用香蕈、木耳，以其色黑相似也。大抵明日訪客，則先一日要煨，海參才爛。嘗見錢觀察家，夏日用芥末、雞汁拌冷海參絲，甚佳。或切小碎丁，用筍丁、香蕈丁入雞湯煨作羹。蔣侍郎家用豆腐皮、雞腿、蘑菇煨海參，亦佳。 List of Seafoods::Three Ways of Preparing Sea Cucumbers As an ingredient, sea cucumbers have little to no taste, are full of sand, and are remarkably fishy in smell. For these reasons, it is also the most difficult ingredient to prepare well. Due to its heavy and thick texture, sea cucumbers should never be …

Seafoods 1: Bird’s Nest (燕窩)

海鮮單::燕窩 燕窩貴物，原不輕用。如用之，每碗必須二兩，先用天泉滾水泡之，將銀針挑去黑絲。用嫩雞湯、好火腿湯、新蘑菇三樣湯滾之，看燕窩變成玉色為度。此物至清，不可以油膩雜之；此物至文，不可以武物串之。今人用肉絲、雞絲雜之，是吃雞絲、肉絲，非吃燕窩也。且徒務其名，往往以三錢生燕窩蓋碗面，如白髮數莖，使客一撩不見，空剩粗物滿碗，真乞兒賣富，反露貧相。不得已，則蘑菇絲、筍尖絲、鯽魚肚、野雞嫩片尚可用也。余到粵東，楊明府冬瓜燕窩甚佳，以柔配柔，以清入清，重用雞汁、蘑菇汁而已。燕窩皆作玉色，不純白也。或打作團，或敲成面，俱屬穿鑿。 List of Seafoods::Bird's Nest Bird's Nest is an a precious ingredient and should not be used trivially. If one wishes to serve bird's nest, each bowl must contain at least 2 liang [1] of the ingredient, prepared by first soaking it in boiled rain-water and any dark strands or debris removed with a …

Seafoods: Introduction (海鮮單:開篇)

海鮮單::開篇 古八珍並無海鮮之說。今世俗尚之，不得不吾從眾。 List of Seafoods::Introduction[1] The Eight Delicacies referred to by the Ancients made no mention of seafoods.[2] A failure to do so today would be contrary to modern tastes and offend the masses. Random notes: [1]: We're finally here! The first section of recipes of Suiyuan Shidan! One year ago, I had doubts that …